Dear Cyndy, 

Thank you for your letter.

Electrical tape has been, in my experience, quite useful
in closing a clean incision which has not been contaminated
with foreign particles. Often the cut heals quickly by what,
if I remember correctly, the surgeons call "first intention."
If pain or swelling develop, the tape must be removed, and
the wound allowed to drain. I hope by this time, David's
finger has healed.

Meanwhile I've had a letter from Mr. Peluso. The date of
the hearing is May 30. Margaret and I are driving back on
May 23. There are two patients scheduled on May 26, and
five patients on June 6. Soon thereafter we will probably
go back to Virginia. The Plumbing Board will issue a formal
written report probably in the middle of June. I expect it
to be unfavorable. I will need to file an appeal from the
plumbing board's ruling, but absent extraordinary consider-
ations, I should be able to compose the appeal in Virginia. 
I expect Judge Macdonald also to rule against me. If I
ultimatley prevail, it will be in the Appeals Court, depending
much on the Panel to which the appeal will be assigned. I
consider the outcome very uncertain.  The courts are like
casinos in which the dice are loaded and the roulette wheels
are brought to a halt at the point most beneficial for the
establishment.

I've installed a new toilet in the upstairs bathroom,
painted the kitchen ceiling, and repaired the drain to the
hot water heater. Aside from putting into drawers and closets
various items of clothing and bedding that are lying around,
the house is in good order. This morning the LCD monitor of
my computer lost its red color display, leaving me with a
text editor that shows green rather than white characters,
quite usable and not worth an 80 mile round trip to Bristol
to buy a replacement.

I continue to work on the novels, making some improvement on
Chapter 53 of Die Freunde. I've also started to edit Chapter 17
of Die Andere, but tonight there's a shortage of inspiration.
It's probably wise to wait until enthusiasm has returned.

Some of my energy has been diverted into thoughts about the
hearing two weeks from tomorrow. Mr. Ciamataro has been summoned.
Presumably he will appear, and if he does, I must expect him to
be very voluble and aggressive. I will bring a very sensitive
hand held voice recorder which Klemens uses to record some of
Nathaniel's concerts. If challenged, I'll argue I need it to
aid both my hearing and my memory. My intention is to record
the entire proceeding, including Mr. Ciarmataro's expected
diatribes.  He will deny that he threatened Mr. Gordon but he
will be hard put to deny that he withheld the plumbing permit
from Mr. Gordon for almost 2 months, and the arbitrary
withholding of a permit is surely a more eloquent threat to
Mr. Gordon's business than mere scolding. So far as my plumbing
is concerned, what Mr. Ciarmataro tells the plumbing board will
presumably have little effect on the Appeals Court's interpretation
of the written Inspection Report and Condemnation Order which he
has filed with the Court.  If the Plumbing Board orders yet another
inspection by Mr.  Ciarmataro, that second inspection will arguably
be tainted by the absence of integrity and fairness of the first
time around.  I'm not afraid of the hearing. I anticipate it with
some satisfaction; but it won't be easy.

As for the IPad that perplexes you, gifts are always a problem.
I wish some suggestion of mine could help to assuage the
embarrassment. I myself find my desktop computers are more
than adequate to absorb all my creative energy. I consider the
IPad and such to be gimmicks devised for the profits of the
manufacturers, and learning the tricks to operate them, a waste
of time. I'm particularly offended by the secrecy of the "user-
friendly" operating system. I don't want to spend time on computer
programs which are deliberately concealed, which because of the
manufacturer's greed I'm not given the opportunity to understand -
and possibly to modify for my own needs.  That's why I have
had nothing to do with Microsoft Windows, and why IPad leaves me
cold.

I hope you and Ned are, - and continue to be well.

Jochen